Dr. Stephen P. Gonzalez, a certified mental performance consultant (CMPC) through the Association for Applied Sport Psychology, joined University of Western States as an adjunct professor in 2021. In addition to his position at UWS, Dr. Gonzalez is the assistant athletic director for leadership and mental performance at Dartmouth College in the Dartmouth Peak Performance (DP2) program, where he oversees the broad-based implementation of leadership programming and mental skills work with 35 NCAA Division I Ivy League teams and more than 950 student-athletes.
Additionally, Dr. Gonzalez works with several national team athletes from two countries and professional athletes in private practice and advises the tech start up Recover Athletics. Previously, Dr. Gonzalez was an assistant professor at SUNY Brockport in the kinesiology, sport studies and physical education department where he taught courses in sport psychology and consulted the NCAA Division III Golden Eagle athletics department as the director of mental training and Rochester Institute of Technology’s NCAA Division I Men’s Hockey Team. Dr. Gonzalez also has experience with the US Army, as he was formerly the lead master resilience trainer, performance expert for the comprehensive soldier and family fitness (CSF2) program at Fort Stewart and Hunter Army Airfield.
Dr. Gonzalez got into the field of sport psychology due to his passion and curiosity to enhance performance and well-being in others. His goals with clients are to help them enjoy their activities, cultivate well-being and ultimately enhance performance. A former NCAA Division I runner, Dr. Gonzalez continues to enjoy running and learning/ trying new sports.
Areas of Expertise
- College athletes
- Professional athletes
- Olympic and national team athletes
Research Interests
- Psychological resilience
- Motivation and motivational climate
- Mindfulness interventions aimed at enhancing attention
